Sheets-xsheet z



Jan. 13, 1953 F. T. HOLMES 2,625,205

SPRING OSCILLATING CHAIR Filed March 24, 1947 2 SHEETSSHEET 1 IN V ENTOR.

ATTO/P/VEY Jan. 13, 1953 F. T. HOLMES 2,625,205

SPRING OSCILLATING CHAIR Filed March 24; 1947 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 i=7; LINVENTOR- Fred 7 fife/mas A 7 O/P/VEV Patented Jan. 13, i953 UNITEDSTATES PATENT OFFICE SPRI G QS TIN CH R Fred 1. Holmes, Denver, Colo.

Applica i n March 24, 4 ,.Se i 1No. 736,6 9

3 Claims. 11

This invention relates to chairs and more particularly to chairs whichare made from lengths of deformable material.

One of the objects of the invention is to produce a chair from severalpieces or lengths of deformable material, such as tubular material,which are so formed and related as to permit the chair to be shippedfrom the factory in a convenient and relatively small package and thenreadily assembled at its destination, or by an ultimate, purchaser.

Another object is to so produce a chair from several pieces ofsuitablematerial that the chair can be readily "knocked down for storage in asmall space or for transfer from place to place in large numbers with aminimum of occupied space, as may be desirable in a chair rentalbusiness.

A further and more specific object is to produce a knock down" chairframe from four pieces of tubular material which will permit the chairto be placed in a package having a depth approximating twice thediameter of the tubular material.

Yet another object is to produce a sturdy and serviceable knock down"chair frame from a minimum of pieces of material;

Still another object is to produce a chair in which the back and seatpanels are made from a flexible material andso associated with frame ofthe chair as to be easily replaceable.

A still further object is to produce a chair from tubular material whichis so formed as to preduce a yieldable and comfortable backrsection.

A further object is to produce an attractive and comfortable tubularframed chairwhich can be manufactured at a lowcost.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent from the followingdescription taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a front view of a tubular frame chair embodying theinvention;

Figure 2 is a side view of the chair with a portion of the back panelbroken away;

Figure 3 isa topview of the chair;

Figure 4 is a sectional View taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 2 andshowingdetails of the, joint employed to detachably connect the severaltubular pieces together;

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5-.- 5 of Figure 3showing the means for holding the seatpanel in position;

Figure 6 is a front view of another tubular frame. chair embodying theinvention;

Figure 7 is a side view of the chair of Figure 6-;

Figure 8 is a top view of the chairof Figure 6;

Figure 9 is a view showing a manner of mounting the back section of thechair to the upright sections of the tubular frame;

Figure 10 is a sectional view taken on the line Ill-l0 of Figure 9; andV Figure 11 is a sectional view taken on the line I l--H of Figure 6showing the connection of the brace.

Referring to the drawings in detailand first to Figures 1 to 5,inclusive, myimproved chair in its assembled condition is shown inFigure 1 wherein the frame structure is disclosed as being made fromtubular material, although it maybe made from any other suitablematerial suchas, for example, flat spring type metal, solid rodding oreven suitable plastic material. The chair com-.- prises, essentially,three parts which are the frame structure F; the seat panel Sand the.back panel B. The frame structure F has two side frame members A and A,each being of the same form and constructed of a single piece ofmaterial. Each side. frame member is shaped to pro-. vide: ahorizontalfiooreengaging section I., a front upwardly extending leg section 2', asubstantial- 1y horizontal rearwardly extending seat-support.- ingsection 3and a rear upwardly extending back supportmg section 4.

The rear ends of the horizontal floor-engaging sections of the sideframe members are con nected together by a. u-shaped member 5. Theconnections. between these. ends; of the floor-ens gaging sections andthe. ends of. the member 5.- an be made by any sui able readilydetachable join structure, en r lly indicated. by the nu,- meral 6,, andther by permittin the urshanedconnectin member 5. to, beeonnected. toand-c1 5 ce nec d m he e f ame membe s whene er des ed, ne J nt w i h.is su t b e for makin th conn c o is shown n the se io al view of Figure4.. This joint, compris s, a short, id:x r d d, 1. ha ng, an ou r diamee t snugly fit into the tubular material. One end of this rod i may bepermanently fastened. as. shown, intov the end of the U-shapedconnecting, member 5 and the other end telescoped into the end of thesection I. In order to prevent separation of the rod from the end of.the section I- there can be provided a screw 8 which extends through anopening in the sectionv l and is si rewed into a threaded hole in therod. 1. Thu when it, is. desired to disconnect the joint, all that needsto be. done is remove the screw 8 and then slipv the rod. 1 out of thesection I. Itis obvious that in the place. of the screw 8 any otherreadily detachable holding element could be used such as a spring biasedlatch. If material other than tubular material is employed, anysuitable. joint can replace the one shown.

Another separately formed. U-shaped tubular b r i e ye to, connect the.upper ends ofthe ba k supp rt ng sections, 4 of the two fram members andto thereby hold them. in spaced relation and to further provide asuitable back frame for the chair. The U-shaped member 9 has its endsdetachably connected to the ends of the sections 4 by joints which maybe the same as or similar to the previously described joint 6. Thenumeral 6 is employed to also indicate such joints.

With the frame structure of the chair constructed in the mannerdescribed, it is readily seen that with the two side frame members andthe two separate U-shaped connecting members 5 and 9 a rigid framestructure will be obtained. The connecting members 5 and 9 will preventthe two side frame members A and A from having any appreciable movementtowards each other,.

The frame structure will be sturdy enough to treme marginal edge is thensewed to the main portion of the panel to provide a tunnel. In orderthat the seat panel may be prevented from sliding on the tubular seatsupporting sections 3, the material can be attached to such sections as,

for example, by suitable upholstery clips II] which pass through thematerial and into openings in the tubular sections 3 as shown in Figure5.

The back panel B of the chair of Figure 1 is also preferably made ofsuitable flexible material.

. The material is sewed up in somewhat the same manner as a sack and ofa shape to be snugly slipped down over the U-shaped member 9 and thesections 4. If desired, the front portion of the back panel can bepadded or have a pad associated therewith to thereby give greatercomfort.

With a chair constructed in the described manner, it will be apparentthat it may be easily shipped from the factory in a "knocked downcondition and thereby save considerable space. The whole chair can beplaced in a cardboard box, the depth of which need to be only abouttwice the diameter of the tubular material, the

length of which need only be the vertical distance A from the section Iof the side frame members to the top of the back-supporting section 4,and the width of which need only be substantially the horizontaldistance between the leg section 2 and the back-supporting section 4.The U -shaped connecting members 5 and 9 can be suitably associated withthe side frame members when packaged so as to keep overall dimensions orvolume of the package to a minimum. The lengths of the legs of theU-shaped section 9 and the section 4 should be so chosen that whenpackaged the overall length of the pa ka e w l e pt t a minimum. Thelengths of the legs of the U-shaped section 5 and the sections I shouldbe such that the ends of sections I do not extend outwardly of thesections 4. When a chair is constructed as described, so as to be packedin a small package, it can be very readily assembled by the retailer orultimate user as all that is required is to attach the connectingmembers 5 and 9 and then slip the back panel B over the back frameportion of the chair. The seat S may, if desired, be assembled on theside-frame members at the factory since it is made of flexible materialand will not interfere with the position- A single panel of the seatchair in Figure l.

4 ing of the two side members in juxtaposition for packing. It is alsoto be noted that both the seat and back panels can always be readilyremoved for cleaning or replacement when worn.

Due to the fact that the material from which the frame structure of-thechair is made may have a tendency to slightly yield or give," it ispossible that after the chair is assembled and notwithstanding tightnessof the joints 6, the upper parts of the two leg sections may be pulledinwardly towards each other when an extremely heavy person sits in thechair. Such inward movement, if occurring, might tend to cause somediscomfort to the person sitting in the chair. This, however, can besubstantially eliminated by so forming each seat supporting section 3 inrelation to the other sections of a frame member that the sections 3will have a forwardly diverging relationship when the chair isassembled. This diverging relationship is illustrated in the front andtop views of the chair. Th floor engaging sections I may also have aforwardly divergin relation, as shown, if such is desired. In Figures 6to 11, inclusive, there is shown a slightly modified chair structurewherein a rigid back is provided and also the frame structure so formedas to permit the back to be somewhat more yieldable with respect to theframe structure as a whole. The frame structure for this chair alsocomprises two side frame members C and C, each of which has a floorengaging section H, a front upwardly extending leg section l2, asubstantially horizontal rearwardly extending seat supporting section 13and a rear upwardly extending back portion 14. The frame materialbetween the seat supporting section and the back supporting sectionis-soformed as to provide a loop i5, as shown, which acts as a springmeans to produce a greater yielding of the back supporting section withrespect to the seat supporting section than where the back supportingsection is merely bent upwardly with respect to the seat supportingsection as shown in the chair in Figure 1. The two floor engagingsections H are connected together by a U-shaped member 16, theconnection being made by detachable joints l! which may take the sameform as the joint 6 shown in Figure 4 and employed in the chair ofFigure l. The seat S for the chair of Figure 6 is made of a flexiblematerial such as fabric, leather or synthetic material and is connectedto the seat supporting section 13 of the two side members by sewedtunnels in the same manner as the seat S of the The back panel B for thechair of Figure 6 is constructed of a rigid material such as sheetmetal, wood or any other suitable material. This back panel B isarranged to be detachably connected to the upwardly extending backsupporting sections M of the two side members and functions to take theplace of the detachable U-shaped connecting member 9 of the chair ofFigure I, together with the flexible back panel B of said chair. Itisthus obvious that this back panel B could be embodied in the chair ofFigure 1 if desired. Any suitable detachableconnections can be employedto mount the back panelB' to the upwardly extending sections M. Asuitable connection is shown in Figures& and 10 wherein they back panelB, if made of metal, can have welded thereto bosses [8, each of which isto be received in a hole 19 in the section [4. A screw 20 will beemployed to extend through an opening 2! diametrically opposite theopening 19 and then be threaded into the boss l8, thereby clamping theback panel B to the section [4. If the frame members C and C are madefrom tubular material, suitable plugs 22 can be provided for the topopen ends of the sections M, thus forming a pleasing appearance at theback of the chair and also to keep out water and other foreign material.

The forward parts of the seat supporting sections 13 of the framestructure of the chair in Figure 6 may have a tendency to yield inwardlytowards each other when a person of considerable weight is sitting inthe chair. It is possible to prevent this by providing a brace 23between the two leg sections of the side frame members. This braceshould be readily detachable so as to permit assembly and disassembly ofthe chair and in Figure 11 there is shown a suitable manner of makingthe detachable connection. The ends of the brace 23 are provided withflattened portions 24 and a screw 25 arranged to extend through thetubular material of the leg section l2 and be screwed into a threadedopening in the flattened end of the brace. The flattened end ispreferably placed at the rear side of the leg section.

It is believed to be readily apparent that the chair if Figure 6 can bepackaged in a knocked down condition and assembled by the retailer orthe ultimate purchaser in the same manner as the chair of Figure 1. Thepackage will have minimum dimensions. The connecting member 16, when thechair is packaged, will be in detached condition, as will be the backpanel B and also the brace 23 if employed. The flexible seat S can, ifdesired, be placed upon the frame members at the factory. When the chairis received in its knocked down condition the U- shaped connectingmember i6 can be quickly attached to the ends of the floor engagingsections 1 i of the two side frame members, the back panel B attached tothe upwardly extending back sections Hi and the brace 23 attached in themanner shown. The chair is then ready for use. Upholstery clips 26 canbe employed to prevent slipping of the seat S on the seat supportingsections 13. The seat panel can be removed at any time for cleaning orreplacement.

The two chairs shown in Figures 1 and 6 will have the advantage thatthey can be shipped from the factory in knocked down condition and thenreadily assembled at their destination upon reaching the ultimatepurchaser. The chair can also be taken apart at any time for storage ina small space. Also, a considerably greater number of chairs will bepermitted to be stored in a given space than would be possible withchairs which could not be knocked down. This would be of considerableadvantage to any user of a large number of chairs who desired to storethem during certain seasons. It would also be very desirable to anyonein the chair rental business since the chairs could be knocked down topermit a saving in space during transportation and also for storage.

Being aware of the possibilities of modifications in the particularchairs disclosed by way of example, without departing from thefundamental principles of the invention, I do not intend that the scopeof the invention be limited 7 in any manner except in accordance withthe appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A chair comprising two separate tubular side frame members for spacedpositioning and each so formed asto provide a horizontal floor engagingsection, a front upwardly extending leg section. a substantiallyhorizontal rearwardly extending seat supporting section and a rearupwardly extending back supporting section with a looped portion betweenit and the seat supporting section to thereby permit yieldable relativemovement between the sections, a separately formed tubular memberdetachably connected at its end to the rear ends of the floor engagingsections, and detachable means associated with the upwardly extendingback supporting sections for rigidly maintaining said sections in spacedrelation and for providing a back for the chair, and a seat of readilyflexible material extending between and attached to the seat supportingsections.

2. A chair comprising two separate tubular side frame members for spacedpositioning and each so formed as to provide a horizontal floor engagingsection, a front upwardly extending leg sec tion, a substantiallyhorizontal rearwardly ex tending seat supporting section and a rearupw-ardly extending back supporting section with a looped portionbetween it and the seat supporting section, a separately formed tubularmember detachably connected at it ends to the rear ends of the floorengaging sections, a rigid back member detachably connected to theupwardly extending back supporting sections, and a seat of readilyflexible material extending between and having its marginal sideportions attached to the seat supporting sections.

3. A chair comprising two tubular side'frame members for spacedpositioning and each so formed as to provide a horizontal floor engagingsection, a front upwardly extending leg section, a substantiallyhorizontal rearwardly extending seat supporting section and a rearupwardly extending back supporting section with an integral loopedportion between it and the seat supporting section to thereby permitindependent yieldability of the back part of the chair relative to theseat part, a tubular member connecting the rear ends of the floorengaging sections, a rigid back member connecting the upwardly extendingback supporting section-s together, and a seat extending between andhaving its marginal side portion attached to the seat supportingsections, said seat being separate from the back part of the chair.

FRED T. HOLMES.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 329,850 Overman Nov. 3, 18852,090,562 Walter Aug. 1'7, 1937 2,122,172 Bergmann June 28, 19382,134,639 McGowen Oct. 25, 1938 2,292,586 Thompson Aug. 11, 19422,390,878 Greitzer Dec. 11, 1945 2,417,733 Booth Mar. 18, 1947 2,564,915Nelson Aug. 21, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 18,868 GreatBritain 1890 178,822 Great Britain Apr. 20, 1922 714,178 France Aug. 31,1931

